MORE than 400 residents of Fort Hill in Hellshire, Portmore, St Catherine, now have access to an improved supply of potable water following an investment of more than $8 million to boost the system.

The Fort Hill area was impacted by infrequent water supply. That triggered construction of the Hellshire Phase 3 Booster Station, through a collaboration between National Water Commission (NWC) and National Housing Trust (NHT).

Speaking at the official commissioning of the system last Friday, minister without portfolio in the Ministry of Economic Growth and Job Creation Senator Matthew Samuda said the project demonstrates that the concerns of citizens are heard and responses are made.

He noted that in the coming months infrastructure upgrades will be done for the Braeton and Hellshire communities.

“We do not intend to go into the next drought season in this area with the particular infrastructural weaknesses that you have; we are looking at how best to tailor that solution,” Samuda said.

With completion of the project, NWC has terminated its trucking arrangements for water to be supplied to the area.

The scope of work included installation of two vertical, multi-stage, centrifugal pump units, installation of a flow meter, valves and various appurtenances.

Welcoming the development, Member of Parliament for St Catherine Southern Fitz Jackson said the residents are no longer inconvenienced by the occasional supply, and “to have a system that is more reliable, it is more than welcomed”.

Regional manager at NWC Gawaine Johnson said the project was embarked on to ensure that water reaches all the residents and to meet standards laid down by the Office of Utilities Regulation.

“This is one of our best-paying communities, and it is an investment well spent,” Johnson said.

The NWC has a mission to “contribute positively” to national development by providing “high-quality”, potable water and sewerage services to residents and businesses in a “cost-effective and sustainable manner”, he said.